Black History Month Community Highlight: Wilhelmina Grant-Cooper
Written by: Mirja-Leena Zgurskaya
In the honor of Black History Month we would like to introduce you to a few important members of our Kota Community. In this way, we would like to thank them for their priceless work they do for local womxn.
The first woman we would like you to meet is a Harlem based artist and relentless community builder Wilhelmina Grant-Cooper. Wilhelmina seems to have done it all in life: from health care to modeling to author to community care to artist and free-time gardener. Almost seems like she has more hours in the day than the rest of us!
To help her with her numerous projects, Wilhelmina has a non-profit organization called SISTAAH (Survivors Inspiring Sisters Through Art and Advocacy for Health). She seeks to help destigmatize the presence of cancer in the community as well as guide towards medical help. Many of (breast) cancers are not diagnosed in time for many reasons. Women, people with insurance issues, and people of color are less likely to be taken seriously when seeking for medical help. By knowing your own body and fighting for your rights, you can be able to save your own life.
A current spring project Wilhelmina has been working on is an Open Your Eyes Arts Project for adult survivors of cancer and their supporters. As a breast cancer survivor herself, Wilhelmina works hard to destigmatize cancer as something taboo, shameful and pitiful. Her project intends to bring the local community together to create art and celebrate life. The point of the event is not only to raise awareness but to offer personal help in feeling connected to the world through art. The low threshold project connects people: the artists and first-time art makers, the survivors and their companions.
To Wilhelmina, art is something that keeps you alive and healthy. Creating something you didn’t know you could even do, with possibly zero experience of making art, makes you feel hopeful and powerful. Retirement or sickness shouldn’t be the end of life. Keeping yourself busy and inspired helps you enjoy day-to-day life. New Yorkers of all people tend to be extremely busy and stressed out, so it’s important to find time to spend on things that actually give you energy instead of spending it. Wilhelmina says that people joining the arts making events have been surprised and delighted by their own work. Doing something for the first time, even if it is out of your comfort zone, is a process and a win in itself.
Wilhelmina preaches on living your life according to your intuition and need. When asked about some dreams she still wishes to fulfill, she gets thoughtful for a second and tells her most recent dream she has fulfilled already – becoming a gardener at her own beautiful backyard. Another dream (or more of a plan) is writing another book (besides two already published) and keeping up with all of her community empowering projects at hand as well as her own artmaking.
Several of her art pieces have been purchased and used in the Prime Video series Harlem, and her art pieces and books have been endorsed by names like Alice Walker and Bill Clinton. Her art has also been at show at our Kota art exhibits multiple times.
More about her art and future projects on her website.
Thank you Wilhelmina!
